InternetNZ unveils software for Enum

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InternetNZ has released the source code for its prototype
"personal user agent" to be used with phone and internet numbering
system Enum, planned for trial this year.

Enum assigns internet addresses as a single point of contact for
each person. It allows landline and mobile calls as well as email
and instant messages through one number.

The personal user agent software, developed by Wellington IT
firm Catalyst, filters requests for Enum contact information and
routes incoming calls based on the caller's identity, similar to
the way a firewall routes network traffic. For example, someone
could route calls from family members to their mobile when they are
not at home, but not calls from telemarketers.

The prototype agent is open-source and InternetNZ envisages
developers will modify it to create commercial offerings to attract
customers.

The potential market is huge, since everyone with a phone number
could potentially move to an Enum.

Enum task force chairman Michael Sutton says the personal user
agents could be modified in a number of ways and may be offered as
an add-on to existing telco or internet services.

InternetNZ, the non-profit society that runs the .nz domain
name, has built a prototype Enum system and plans a wider trial
later this year in partnership with the Telecommunications Carriers
Forum, a telco industry body. The trial will create a platform to
investigate privacy concerns, security issues, and how best to
commercialise the personal user agents.

It will link the agent with a "universal communications
identifier" that specifies the user's Enum as well as their
preferences, such as language, security certificates, and whether
they have any disabilities. This identifier will then point calls
to the personal user agent to handle.

The trial may be open to the public, and will be on an opt-in
basis.

The personal user agent code was based on a proposal by the
European Telecommunications Standards Institute. Enum is being or
has been trialled in about 30 countries. Austria and Poland have
already launched Enum services, and Britain is expected to follow
next year.

Because Enum directories will contain much more than a phone
book they have raised concerns among overseas privacy advocates who
fear the information could be used by criminals or marketers. The
advocates are pushing for strict controls over who can access an
individual's Enum, and stress the service must be opt-in only.